The present invention relates to a facsimile terminal capable of making telephone communication during facsimile transmission or after completing facsimile transmission accurately and effectively, and more particularly to a facsimile terminal capable of automatically dialing a telephone number of at a location where a remote operator can make a response to a voice request.
There are some cases in facsimile communications, where it necessary to call operator of a remote station to give liaison information such as a comment concerning image information transmitted after or during facsimile transmission. A voice request function is available in such cases, where a message or a warning sound indicating the presence of the voice request can be output visually on the display or audibly from the sound generating part of the terminal at the remote station after or during facsimile transmission.
When the remote operator who has recognized the message or warning sound, lifts the telephone receiver (handset), telephone communication becomes possible.
However, there is a problem that, in the case where the remote operator works at a place away from the location where a facsimile terminal is installed, the operator is unable to respond to the voice request. Further, the operator has no chance to know even that the voice request has been made.
Furthermore, in order to carry out the telephone communication, it is inconvenient that the operator at a transmitting station has to be kept near to the facsimile terminal until the facsimile transmission has been completed.
To solve such problem, a facsimile terminal has been proposed which is adapted so that an operator who has been away from the facsimile terminal, is, upon return able to know that a voice request has been received by observing a display that indicates that there has been a telephone message since operator could not respond to the voice request because the operator had been away from the facsimile terminal. (Published Unexamined Japanese Utility Model Application No. 42659/89).
Alternatively, a facsimile terminal has been proposed which is adapted to record a message in a voice recorder in advance if the operator at the transmitting station needs to be away from the facsimile terminal and to dial the telephone number of the remote station registered in advance to send the message (Published Unexamined Japanese Patent Application No. 81876/87 or 1362/89).
The conventional facsimile terminal as described above is disadvantageous in that the operator at the transmitting station is unable to contact the operator of the receiving station until the latter operator comes back near the facsimile terminal and therefore a required action cannot be taken at the time of emergency
It is also disadvantageous in that any due information will be delayed if there is no person to respond to the voice request.
When there is no person beside the facsimile terminal and the telephone set at a destination to be contacted, telephone communication can be made conveniently, to an alternate telephone number at the location where a person to be contacted stays, but the alternate telephone number cannot be determined at the transmitting station.